Cotton Thistle vs Sharp-shinned Hawk

Onopordum acanthium compared with Accipiter striatus

Key Differences

• Cotton Thistle is Endangered while Sharp-shinned Hawk is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cotton Thistle	Sharp-shinned Hawk
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Asterales (Daisies & Sunflowers)	Accipitriformes (Hawks & Eagles)
Family	Asteraceae (Daisy Family)	Accipitridae (Hawks & Eagles)
Genus	Onopordum	Accipiter
Species	Onopordum acanthium	Accipiter striatus

Conservation Status

Cotton Thistle

EN — Endangered

Sharp-shinned Hawk

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Cotton Thistle	Sharp-shinned Hawk
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cotton Thistle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, tundra, and tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, among 10 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Georgia, India, Japan), Europe (22 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia, New Zealand), and South America (Argentina, Brazil, Chile). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, United States, and Venezuela.

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇺🇸 United States